2007 Topps Series 1
What I pulled--
Inserts and Parallels:
Gold Parallels (#ed to 2007) – Joe Nathan, Chris Snyder, Mark Teixeira gold glove
Alex Rodriguez Road to 500 - #4
Distinguished Service – James Doolittle, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Bob Feller
Generation Now – Ryan Howard #21 (no name), #39 (no name), #44, Chase Utley #14 (no name), #19 (no name), Jered
Weaver #1, David Wright #3, #4, #38
Hobby Masters – Carlos Beltran, Miguel Cabrera, Francisco Liriano, Albert Pujols, Johan Santana, Delmon Young
Josh Gibson Home Run History - #5, #580, #710, #793
Mickey Mantle Home Run History - #217, #223, #240, #269
Mickey Mantle Story - #12, #15
Own The Game – David Ortiz, Albert Pujols, Alex Rodriguez, Johan Santana, Brandon Webb, David Wright
Unlock The Mick - #2, #4
Review:
Black is back, and boy, it is beautiful.
Topps Baseball 2007 Series 1 has hit shelves and, for the first time since 1971, Topps has
issued cards with black borders. And the results are stunning.
Topps normally goes all out with their base card set. This is the flagship - the longest running set
on the planet. It can certainly sell itself, but Topps knows the attention this set brings, and
continually goes the extra yard to give buyers their money's worth. This year is no different and, to
be honest, borders on too much. More on that later, though, but I will say now that in no way
should that be perceived as disappointment.
Let's start with the base cards. As has been the case the overwhelming majority of the time (let's
ignore 1990, for instance), Topps has come up with a timeless design for this set. The black
borders, the four square pattern in the corners that is color schemed for each team, the pictures
that dominate the card's front. All of it is perfect. Yes, we have all seen the cards already, given the
hype surrounding the Derek Jeter "George Bush" card, so we are all familiar with these cards and
are guaranteed to see it forever, so let's move to the bells and whistles. And boy are there bells and whistles.
As I said earlier, Topps has almost gone overboard this year with the inserts and parallels in a box. I have listed 40 non-base
cards above, which comes to more than one per 36-pack box. Some are basic parallels, such as the annual gold set. Some
are new features, such as Generation Now, featuring the biggest young stars in the game (although I need to ask why some of
the names are missing - is this an error that has been corrected, or are all of the cards the same?). There are the usual
staples, such as Hobby Masters and Own The Game. There is the new Distinguished Service set, celebrating World War II,
which is a bit unnecessary, if you ask me. There are also the various numbered Home Run sets for Mickey Mantle, Josh
Gibson and the cross-brand Alex Rodriguez ones. My favorite is the Mickey Mantle Story sets, though, featuring vintage photos
of the Mick on cards carrying the 1952 Topps design.
Want more? Believe it or not, there is. There are actually two Topps sets - one featuring white backs, one with red. I'm really not
sure the reason or purpose of this, but each pack comes with a couple of the red back cards. Here is where Topps might have
done the unnecessary, though, as it makes it a little tougher to build a basic white back set, although now people can build a
red back set, as well. There are some autographs and relics floating around in boxes, as well, but we all know that this isn't
what buying a box of this product is about, so I'll save you from the long odds numbers. HTA Jumbo pack boxes do have
copper framed cards #ed to 56 that are selling very well on the secondary market, and there are 1-of-1 platinum cards that,
well, good luck pulling one of those.
When I was a kid, I couldn't wait for the new Topps set to come out. It was always the first real sign that the season was
almost here. I still get that feeling today, and when Topps delivers a product such as this, it only affirms my belief that the basic
Topps set is still the greatest thing in this hobby.......................
A
